IAF Aircraft Inventory:
Dornier Do-27 (Dror)

The Do-27 was the
first aircraft to enter production in Germany after World
War II. The prototype of the
Do-27 was first flown on April 8, 1955, and
the first production aircraft in October
1956. By the time production ended in 1965,
over 600 examples had been built. The type's
largest operator was West Germany but the
type as also served with the Belgian and Swiss air
forces.

The IAF begun operating the Do-27 in October 1964
when the first 10 examples entered service with the
100th "Flying
Camel" Squadron at Sde-Dov. With more aircraft
arriving after the 1967 Six Days War, the Do-27 fleet
would eventually consist of 35 examples. Nicknamed "Dror" (sparrow),
the Do-27 could carry between 4 and 6 passengers. The
type's excellent STOL capabilities allowed the type
to play a large number of roles, among them liason,
light observation, artillery spotting and maritime
patrol. The aircraft were routinely used in operations
against Palestinians infiltrating into Israeli territory
from Jordan in the late 1960s, spotting and tracking
infiltrators while also coordinating the actions of IDF troops on the ground. The Dror's frontline role
also brought about the loss of a number to enemy fire.
During artillery exchanges between Egyptian and Israeli
troops on the Suez
Canal on March 8th 1969, an Egyptian
SA-2 downed one of the Do-27s. Both the pilot and the
scount onboard managed to bail the stricken aircraft
and were collected to a nearby IDF post, but the ongoing
fighting prevented their evacuation to hospital and
the pilot, Ehud Ben Arie, died of his wounds. Another
Dror was shot down by a Syrian missile on October 11th
1973, during the Yom
Kippur War, while on observation
over the Golan
Heights. The pilot, Captain Yaacov Bitzur,
and the two scouts onboard were killed. A third combat
loss seems to have taken place in 1969, but to none
other than an Israeli Hawk SAM.

The type was finally retired in 1981 and most aircraft
were sold abroad. At least 15 were sold to a U.S. operator,
some of which are still flying today. Another resides
at the IAF Museum in Hatzerim.